Denver Seminary

ENGAGE 17 As missionaries in the Dominican Republic, Elliott and his wife, Lindsay, were living their dreams. They felt God's calling early in their marriage to bring the Word of God to the Latin American country. And they believed it was a life- long mission. But less than ten years later, they found themselves back in the United States with a call to long-term missions still weighing heavily on their hearts. Searching for clarity from God, Elliott enrolled at Denver Seminary. He then jumped at the chance to attend "The Mission of God" conference being hosted at the Seminary. Little did he know that God was about to transform his entire view of the Great Commission. ACCEPTING THE CALL OF THE GREAT COMMISSION Elliott became a believer during his last year of college. He earned a degree in engineering, then found himself working in a youth group after graduation while also finishing the prerequisites for medical school. After joining the youth group on a short-term mission trip to the Dominican Republic, he discovered a love for missions. While waiting for his medical school acceptance letters, he departed for another month-long trip with Mission Emanuel a year later—where he met Lindsay. All the while, God was preparing Elliott's heart for a new calling away from the medical field and to the mission field. So when Mission Emanuel invited him to join their staff full time, he was ready to accept. For the next several years, Elliott would spend a few months serving in the Dominican Republic followed by a month at home. During this season, he prepped and led short-term teams ranging from 30 to 130 volunteers each. After getting married in 2006, Elliott and Lindsay were ready to join Mission Emanuel as full-time, in-country workers. But the agency had never employed full-time workers before, so there was no infrastructure or team to train and equip them. Knowing they would need expert training, Lindsay discovered Mission Training International (MTI), where they completed a four-week training course followed by language school in Guatemala. Not long into their training, Elliott and Lindsay both knew they'd love to join the MTI team someday and help future missionaries gain the same valuable tools they had received. Meanwhile, the Dominican Republic was calling. Soon they were in the field, working in the same village in which they'd met years earlier and doing relational, one-on-one ministry. It was a blessed season. And an exhausting one. But less than ten years later, they found themselves back in the United States with a call to long-term missions still weighing heavily on their hearts. Eventually, Elliott took on the role of ministries director and guided the efforts of many national staff members. After two years in this new role, the stress on Elliott became too overwhelming. While he and Lindsay still had hearts to serve in long-term missions, they needed to return to the U.S. to refocus and rest. LIFTING THE BURDEN OF RESPONSIBILITY After a weeklong debrief with MTI and a vision trip, Elliott enrolled in the MDiv program at Denver Seminary in hopes of figuring out what was next. A few weeks after the start of the school year, Denver Seminary—in collaboration with WorldVenture—hosted a conference called "The Mission of God." Leaving the field just a few years into what he thought would be a lifetime of service abroad TAKE IT FROM HERE ELLIOTT SAT IN THE CHAPEL AT DENVER SEMINARY, SURROUNDED BY FELLOW STUDENTS AND OTHER MISSIONARY PROFESSIONALS. AS HE WAITED FOR THE SESSION TO BEGIN, HIS MIND DRIFTED TO THE DOMINICAN REPUBLIC—A FREQUENT DESTINATION FOR HIS WANDERING THOUGHTS LATELY. THE EVENTS OF THE LAST FEW YEARS FLOODED HIS MEMORIES, AND HIS HEART BEGAN TO ACHE. La_Corivo/iStock

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